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13 Oct 2014, 11:00
| FROM Stacy Blackman Consulting Blog: B-Schools Still Lukewarm on GMAT IR Section…For Now |
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According to Kaplan Test Prep’s 2014 survey of admissions officers at over 200 business schools across the United States, 60% say that an applicant’s score on the GMAT’s Integrated Reasoning section (launched in June 2012) is not currently an important part of their evaluation of a prospective student’s overall GMAT score. This represents a slight uptick from Kaplan’s 2013 survey, when 57% said an applicant’s Integrated Reasoning score was not important. Despite that finding, Kaplan’s survey also finds that 50% of business schools pinpoint a low GMAT score as “the biggest application killer,” confirming that applicants still need to submit a strong score overall. And because GMAT takers receive a separate score for the Integrated Reasoning section, poor performance on this section cannot be masked by stronger performance on the Quantitative, Verbal or Analytical Writing Assessment sections of the exam. Brian Carlidge, executive director of pre-business and pre-graduate programs at Kaplan Test Prep, says the current lack of emphasis on the IR section may be due to the fact that applicants in 2012, 2013, and 2014 probably submitted scores from the old GMAT, since scores are good for five years. The tide will likely change though as more applicants submit scores from the current iteration of the GMAT with the IR section. For that reason, Kaplan advises MBA applicants to continue preparing for and doing well on the IR section. “Similar to how not scoring well on Integrated Reasoning cannot be masked by good performance on other sections because it receives its own separate score, doing well on Integrated Reasoning can set you apart from other applicants in a positive way,” says Carlidge. “Use it to your advantage.” For the 2014 Kaplan survey, admissions officers from 204 business schools from across the United States – including 11 of the top 30 MBA programs, as ranked by U.S. News & World Report – were polled by telephone between August and September 2014. You may also be interested in: The New GMAT Integrated Reasoning: What to Expect Score Preview Added to GMAT |
13 Oct 2014, 11:00
| FROM Stacy Blackman Consulting Blog: Choose Safety Schools for Your MBA Applications Carefully |
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This post originally appeared on Stacy’s “Strictly Business” MBA Blog on U.S.News.com Landing a seat at a top MBA program isn’t a slam-dunk for anybody. It’s getting increasingly competitive to get into the highest-ranked schools. The term safety school gets thrown around quite a bit in MBA admissions, and it’s important for applicants to have a clear understanding of what that term means before they start the school selection process. The rule when coming up with a list of business schools is that you must feel genuine enthusiasm about attending each and every one of them, regardless of whether they are dream schools or programs you might consider a safer bet. If you would feel disappointed rather than ecstatic about advancing your career by attending a school, then do not apply. That’s a waste of everyone’s time and your money. [Consider the benefits of looking beyond the top-ranked business schools.] A good way to determine whether your list should include one or more safety schools is by asking yourself how important it is for you to go to business school next year. If the need is immediate, then definitely include a range of schools of varying degrees of competitiveness. The application pool fluctuates each year, and all you need is one admit, so spread some risk around. However, if you’ve zeroed in on a handful of highly competitive programs that you strongly feel are the best choices for advancing your professional goals, and you have some flexibility with the timing, it would be better to focus your energies on the GMAT and elevating your profile in line with your target programs’ characteristics. If you don’t get in the first time, you can learn from your weak points and reapply in the next application cycle. A safety school doesn’t mean you’d be guaranteed an offer of admission, though. It merely means your chances are far greater than at a program with an acceptance rate of 15 percent or lower. [Here are some tips to narrow down your b-school application list.] So, in order to decide what qualifies as a safety school for you, start with the hard data points. As a general guideline, take a look at programs you like where your profile falls within the top 10 percent of admitted students. Compare your undergraduate GPA, GMAT score, years of work experience and particular industry with those of accepted applicants reported by the school in their class profile page. If your industry is underrepresented, consider that an advantage for your application. Everyone has different reasons for applying to business school. Your main focus may be on networking prospects, the educational experience, geographic location, culture, special programming or even family tradition. If you’re excited about any of those elements at a school and would be happy to attend for any of those reasons, then consider it, even if it’s a safe choice. I had a client who applied to both University of California—Los Angeles Anderson School of Management and Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business. Of the two, Stanford is obviously the more competitive “reach” school, but my client was from Los Angeles and would have been happy to go to Anderson, thus making it a great selection for a safety school. [Fight the fear of failure when applying to MBA programs.] Ultimately, he did get into Stanford and chose that school over the full scholarship? offer he received from UCLA. Another client faced the difficult decision of remaining on the waitlist? at the University of California—Berkeley Haas School of Business, his dream choice, or accepting an offer of admission from the University of Texas—Austin McCombs School of Business, his safety school and one he would be thrilled to attend. When the waitlist? purgatory continued into summer, even after he’d submitted a deposit to hold his place at McCombs, he finally decided to withdraw from the Haas wait list and commit to a sure thing. He was increasingly happy with McCombs as he met his future classmates and weighed the significant financial benefits of in-state tuition. If you do apply to a range of schools, make sure each is a good fit and that your excitement, level of research and passion for the program comes through in your application regardless of whether it’s a safety school or not. The folks in the admissions committee have typically been at it long enough and can tell when an applicant has lukewarm feelings for them – and that’s the surest way your safe bet will become a bust. |
14 Oct 2014, 12:00
| FROM Stacy Blackman Consulting Blog: USC Marshall Fall 2015 MBA Essay Question |
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The USC Marshall School of Business has a streamlined application process, like many programs this season, and requires one essay of Fall 2015 applicants. Essay: What are your short-term and long term personal and/or professional goals following graduation from USC Marshall? How will USC Marshall enable you to develop or improve your skills in order to reach your goals? (500-700 words) Optional Essay: Please provide any additional information you believe is important and/or will address any areas of concern that will be beneficial to the Admissions Committee in considering your application. (250 words) Re-Application Essay: Please describe any significant professional, personal, or academic growth since your last application to the USC Marshall School of Business. Discuss your specific professional goals and how the USC Marshall MBA Program will help you achieve those goals. (500-700 words) You may also be interested in: USC Marshall 2014-2015 MBA Application Deadlines USC Marshall Offers New Degree in Entrepreneurship |
15 Oct 2014, 06:00
| FROM Stacy Blackman Consulting Blog: MBA Essay Do’s and Don’ts from Kenan-Flagler |
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The admissions team at UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School recently provided a list of helpful do’s and dont’s for applicants working on their MBA admissions essay, and their advice holds no matter which program you’re currently contemplating. Three Things to Do:
UNC Kenan-Flagler 2014-2015 MBA Essay Topics UNC Kenan-Flager’s History of Sustainable Enterprise |
16 Oct 2014, 05:00
| FROM Stacy Blackman Consulting Blog: ROI of the MBA Strong Across Most Tiers |
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Just about everyone knows that earning an MBA degree offers an excellent return on investment. But what’s interesting to learn is that even schools outside of the Top 20 and without a globally recognized brand still offer degree-holders the chance to rake in a seven-figure income over a two-decade period. PayScale, which collects salary data from individuals through online pay comparison tools, provided an analysis for Poets&Quants which revealed that the career and salary benefits extended far beyond top tier MBA programs. Several schools offer a greater ROI than their ranking would suggest, Payscale determined. MBAs from Boston University, says P&Q’s editor in chief John A. Byrne as an example, earned enough money–$2,329,000–to put them at No. 19 on the list, even though his organization ranks BU’s full-time MBA program at 40. Similarly, MBAs from UC-Irvine’s Merage Business School will earn an estimated $2,319,932 over the 20 years, putting Merage alums at No. 21 on the list, though the school’s MBA program is ranked at 47. That’s not to say attending a top school isn’t really worth the hefty cost; far from it. The highly ranked, big-brand schools tend to deliver the highest earnings over a 20-year period, Byrne reports. “Harvard Business School’s MBAs come out on top, with median income of $3,233,000. Stanford MBA holders are next with $3,011,000, and Wharton comes in third with $2,989,000. Harvard MBAs, in fact, earned nearly twice as much as MBAs from Texas A&M’s Mays Business School, who pull in $1,781,820 over 20 years,” he notes. The deans of two prominent business schools weigh in on the issue in Byrne’s story. Robert Bruner of the University of Virginia’s Darden School, isn’t surprised by the strong association between income potential and where you earn your MBA. “There is a winners-take-all, self-reinforcing cycle in higher education: certain schools attract excellent student talent, which in turn attracts intense recruiter activity and high-salary offers. The employment results make it easier for those schools to attract excellent student talent…and the cycle continues,” Bruner says. Paul Danos, dean of Dartmouth College’s Tuck School of Business, notes that while the elite programs require a significant investment in time and money, it pays off in both career options and compensation. “The top programs are able to recruit the best qualified students, provide a truly excellent educational experience, and therefore attract top recruiters who recognize the value of that experience.” While industry choice, geographic location, and other factors ultimately influence ROI, those in management education are unanimous in their belief that no other degree can open doors as the MBA does. ““It is a transformative experience that enables an engineer to become a financier, a high school teacher to become a marketing executive, or an auditor to become a mergers and acquisition specialist for a top corporation, says Danos. “I know of no other educational experience that can match the total value proposition of a 2-year full time MBA.” You may also be interested in: Forbes Announces Top MBA Rankings |
17 Oct 2014, 06:00
| FROM Stacy Blackman Consulting Blog: Princeton Review 2015 B-School Rankings |
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The Princeton Review recently released the 2015 editions of its guides to business and law schools, which also include annual ranking lists uniquely based on student surveys. Among the ranking list categories and schools ranked #1 on them, you’ll find: “Best Career Prospects”—Stanford Graduate School of Business “Best Professors”—Yale School of Management “Best Classroom Experience”—New York University Stern School of Business “Toughest to Get Into” (the only ranking list in the books based on school-reported data)— Stanford Graduate School of Business “Greatest Opportunity for Women”—Simmons College “Best Green MBA”—Yale School of Management Unlike other popular rankings, the Princeton Review does not rank the business or law schools hierarchically. “Each school in our books offers outstanding academics: no single law or b-school is ‘best’ overall,” says Robert Franek, SVP / Publisher of the Princeton Review. “We publish rankings in several categories along with our detailed profiles of the schools to give applicants the broader information they need to determine which school will be best for them.” |
17 Oct 2014, 09:00
| FROM Stacy Blackman Consulting Blog: Social Media Will Change the B-School Landscape |
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Social media as it relates to management education continues to be a hot topic, and I found the comments in a recent Huffington Post blog piece really fascinating. For Millennials, memories of the world prior to Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram may be hazy, while members of Generation X have perfect recall of the pre-Internet days. John T. Delaney, dean of Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business and the College of Business Administration at the University of Pittsburgh, writes about the irony of rising loneliness in our connected world, and how the social media disconnect will affect business schools. This disconnect relates to a growing inability among the youngest professionals to interact face-to-face and to collaborate in an era of truncated communication. “Because this dynamic affects human interactions and society, it will affect business schools,” Delaney writes. “I see it exacerbating the existing trend of students coming to school with higher test scores but having a growing need for the development of emotional intelligence and social graces.” One of the best ways to combat those deficiencies, and one that’s already in play at many top MBA programs, is to shift greater focus on experiential learning and soft skills in tandem with the typical foundation courses. The dean points to ways technology has already disrupted the classroom experience and altered professor/student relationships, but he also recognizes the numerous advantages of social media—including its ability to democratize and increase transparency in the academic setting. It may be too soon to fully grasp the effects social media will have on management education even ten years from now, but Delaney is grappling with these issues now, and his article offers much food for thought. |
20 Oct 2014, 06:00
| FROM Stacy Blackman Consulting Blog: How to Stay Sane During B-School |
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By now, you’ve either fantasized about how hectic yet wonderfully enriching business school life is, or you’re living it right now. Rohan Rajiv, a first-year student in Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management‘s two-year MBA program, has written a thoughtful blog post on how to prioritize your experiences—and it begins with putting yourself above all else. While he started the program fully aware of the many interesting academic things he would learn throughout his time at Kellogg, Rajiv says he didn’t expect he would have to learn about such things as decision-making and trade-offs, both of which guide the daily experience at business school. The challenge of competing priorities—academics, career planning, extra-curriculars, social, family, ourselves—can sap all your energy until you learn to rank them in order of importance. Rajiv shares three core ideas he’s learned about maintaining balance so far: Make decisions easy for yourself by being crystal clear about your core priorities. “If you aren’t clear about the relative importance of your core priorities, you are going to drain your energy every day just thinking about these decisions. Once you get clear on your own priorities, decisions get much easier.” Pre-decide your days and weeks as far as possible. “Most of the time you have enough information to plan in advance. There’s a high return-on-investment on being brutally organized. Pre-decide by blocking off your time for the week based on your priorities. If you don’t prioritize exercise and sleep, other things will get in the way. Be proactive to drive your own agenda. Or someone else will.” Make time to reflect. “The busier things are, the more you need time to reflect. Learning-by-doing is incredibly inefficient if you don’t have enough time to take stock. Again, the return-on-investment on a little reflection time is incredibly high.” The competing priorities never go away, Rajiv acknowledges, but figuring out the best way for you to get a handle on it will make all the difference in your enjoyment level throughout your MBA experience. You may also be interested in: 10 Ways to Make the Most of Your B-School Experience |
20 Oct 2014, 12:00
| FROM Stacy Blackman Consulting Blog: Bloomberg Businessweek Launches #WhyMBA Social Media Project |
 Bloomberg Businessweek has launched #WhyMBA, a Web and social media campaign that calls upon current business school students, graduates, teachers, and anyone with an opinion and a Twitter handle, to engage in a real-time debate about the true value of a graduate business education. #WhyMBA comes at a moment when the costs and benefits of an MBA are a source of passionate discussion across the country. In the run-up to announcing its full-time MBA program rankings on Tuesday, November 11, Bloomberg Businessweek will pose a series of daily questions on Twitter, soliciting feedback from aspiring, current and alumni MBA students, as well as professionals, entrepreneurs and industry leaders with or without an MBA. An accompanying website will track the #WhyMBA conversation, highlight trends, and visualize responses and sentiment. The site allows users to select specific schools, identify and respond to active conversations and topics, and boost a school’s standing by tweeting about it. A live leaderboard will reveal which schools are getting the most mentions on Twitter. Ways to participate:
“We want to find out how people really feel about MBA programs in today’s market. Our upcoming full-time MBA program rankings will help answer the very specific question, ‘which school is right for me?,’ but #WhyMBA opens the real debate to graduates and everyone else: What does a good B-School accomplish or teach? And do those lessons make it worth the time and expense of getting an MBA?” |
21 Oct 2014, 11:00
| FROM Stacy Blackman Consulting Blog: Michigan Ross Admissions Director on Retaking GMAT |
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First off, congratulations to all of the R1 applicants to Michigan Ross School of Business who received an invitation to interview yesterday! MBA admissions director Soojin Kwon discusses the subject of retaking the GMAT in her latest blog post, noting that the question also frequently comes from candidates who have already submitted an application. Perhaps not surprisingly, her answer to whether someone should retake the GMAT is, “It depends.” The tried-and-true advice is to aim for a score in the 80% range, which at Michigan Ross is 650-750. But, 10% of Ross admits have scores below 650, and Kwon explains what an applicant would need to have in order to counterbalance a low score. That 10% looked something like this:
You may also be interested in: Try These Fixes for a Low GMAT Score Admissions Updates from Michigan Ross Michigan Ross MBA Essay Tips |
22 Oct 2014, 12:00
| FROM Stacy Blackman Consulting Blog: Applicants Overwhelming Favor GMAT Over GRE, Kaplan Survey Reveals |
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Acceptance of the GRE as an admissions alternative to the GMAT among U.S. business schools has reached critical mass, according to Kaplan Test Prep’s 2014 survey of business school admissions officers. According to the survey, 85% of MBA programs now give students the option to submit a score from the GRE instead of a GMAT score. This percentage has steadily increased year-over-year since Kaplan first began tracking the issue in 2009, when only 24% of business schools said they accepted the GRE. The caveat in wider GRE acceptance: Still only a trickle of MBA applicants are submitting a GRE score instead of a GMAT score. Over half of the admissions officers surveyed said that just one in ten or fewer applicants took this admissions path last application cycle, representing a slight uptick from Kaplan’s past surveys. But is this apprehension from applicants warranted? Additional Kaplan data shows that 78% of MBA programs say scores from both tests are viewed equally, but 18% of MBA programs say applicants who submit a GMAT score have an advantage over applicants who submit a GRE score. “The trendline for business schools that accept the GRE as an admissions alternative to the GMAT has been unmistakable over the past five years. What was once seen as an almost exotic admissions policy by business schools has become nearly ubiquitous,” says Brian Carlidge, executive director of pre-business and pre-graduate programs, Kaplan Test Prep. “Our advice to prospective MBAs is if all the business schools they plan to apply to accept the GRE in addition to the GMAT, then contact those schools and find out if they have a preference for one exam over the other. We also advise students to take the GMAT if some of the schools to which they intend on applying do not accept the GRE. While the GRE is widely accepted, the only exam that is universally accepted is the GMAT.” |
23 Oct 2014, 11:00
| FROM Stacy Blackman Consulting Blog: Wharton School Round 1 Interview Update |
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The latest posting on the University of Pennsylvania Wharton School MBA admissions blog will bring some relief to nail-biting round 1 applications. The school has announced that invitations to interview will go out on October 31st. Applicants selected to interview will receive the Team-Based Discussion prompt prior to their interview, says Maryellen Lamb, Deputy Vice Dean, Admissions, Financial Aid, and Career Management. Wharton piloted this new interview method last year, with the goal of giving potential students an opportunity to show who they are – how they think, lead, communicate and interact. Lamb recommends that candidates spend about an hour in advance preparing for the discussion. As a reminder, the Team-Based Discussion will be comprised of 5-6 applicants. “Teams will be a function of who signs up – there is no ‘crafting’ done on our end. The discussion will have a prompt and a purpose – that is, there is a tangible outcome you will be working towards,” Lamb explains. The majority of Team-Based Discussion interviews will take place on campus during the month of November and will be conducted by Admissions Fellows, a select group of second-year students. For those unable to participate on campus, Wharton will conduct interviews in Dubai, London, Mumbai, San Francisco, Sao Paulo, Seoul, Shanghai, Singapore, Tokyo and here, in Philadelphia. This format can be challenging yet a lot of fun, and Stacy Blackman Consulting now offers a group interview prep service for applicants invited to interview at a school using the group interview format. Find out more information about this service here. You may also be interested in: 2014 University of Pennsylvania Wharton School MBA Essay Tips Wharton MBA Class of 2016’s Entrepreneurial Mindset |
27 Oct 2014, 10:00
| FROM Stacy Blackman Consulting Blog: Don’t Hide From MBA Admissions Background Checks |
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This post originally appeared on Stacy’s “Strictly Business” MBA Blog on U.S.News.com Background checks in MBA admissions are more common for some schools than others, but their overall use is growing. Some programs vet every admitted applicant, others randomly select a percentage of candidates and still others delve further only when something seems to raise a red flag. The process usually take place in the spring, after all application rounds have passed and candidates begin sending in their deposits. The vast majority of people shouldn’t stress over this verification process. Business schools aren’t on a mission to grill candidates about every last detail of their applications. They simply want to ensure that applicants have honestly represented themselves, their experience and their accomplishments. [Learn to overcome the fear of MBA admissions failure.] Sometimes applicants are screened because their profile is unusual or difficult to verify, such as if their work experience included time in a startup or at a failed startup, in a small family firm or at a company abroad, and the admissions office simply needs to clarify and confirm the details. Typical reasons for rejecting a candidate include ethical lapses or questionable behavior, not disclosing a layoff or firing, evidence of plagiarism and not disclosing a criminal conviction. Willful deception or lying by omission will jeopardize your admission – not minor discrepancies such as being off by a month when listing your employment dates. Most schools give applicants a chance to explain any plausible mistakes. Though I can’t share specific examples due to confidentiality issues, I have had clients who have had problems with background checks. In some cases, an offer of admission was revoked following the background check. In one situation, the student had already started school and was escorted out due to an omission on the application. It wasn’t because of a lie, but rather that this person failed to include information the program would have wanted to know about during the application process. [Dodge three surprising application mistakes MBA students make.] According to a Wall Street Journal piece published earlier this year, Stanford Graduate School of Business began instituting background checks within the past decade under Dean Derrick Bolton, and now all accepted students go through verification tests. Business schools can investigate application details that include everything from recommenders, employment and education history, extracurricular and professional involvements, leadership roles and even authenticate anecdotes from application essays. The Wall Street Journal piece goes on to note that the school typically rescinds offers to a few students each year based on these tests, but the omissions are the hardest to deal with. Bolton told the Journal that two candidates last year did not disclose prior graduate studies, even though they had each graduated with top marks. “There was no issue had it been disclosed. The issue was the deception,” he’s quoted as saying, and their acceptance offers were rescinded. If you’re on the fence about whether to include or explain something in your application, chances are you probably should mention it. When the issue is something like poor academic performance or a gap in employment history, it’s always best to come completely clean. The admissions team isn’t looking for perfection in applicants. [Learn about the nuances of the MBA resume.] Major failures can translate into a story about lessons learned and self-improvement which can actually help your candidacy if you show how you’ve become a wiser, more humble person because of them. However, if the incident you’re wondering about including is personal in nature and does not appear anywhere on your official record, you may decide not to draw unnecessary attention to it. If you learn that your admission is conditional pending corroboration of your professional, academic or personal background, your best option is to cooperate quickly and completely to facilitate the verification process. The schools just want to make sure all applicants are who they say they are. If you’re meticulous about presenting the facts, haven’t exaggerated or lied, and have explained any lapses in judgment that could come back to haunt you, you’ll have nothing to worry about. |
28 Oct 2014, 13:00
| FROM Stacy Blackman Consulting Blog: 2014 Global MBA Recruiting Market |
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Are you curious about where to find the top jobs and salaries across the globe after business school? QS Top MBA recently released its annual MBA employers survey, which, with 5,669 respondents worldwide contributing to this year’s report, makes it the most comprehensive global review of hiring and salary trends available. Key Recruiting Trends in 2014: Across North America, MBA demand has jumped 10% in 2014, in line with the forecast from last year’s report. It seems that as confidence in economic recovery arrives in North America, there is renewed demand for MBA graduates from globally oriented and local employers. Western Europe reported 0% net growth in MBA demand in 2014. While growth in demand in Switzerland (15%), Germany (9%), Belgium (9%), France(6%) and the UK (5%) has buoyed the region, these results are offset by steep declines in Southern Europe, particularly Italy (-27%) and Spain (-1%). However, there is some good news for Europe’s MBAs. The QS Top MBA survey reports growth across Europe is forecast to accelerate in 2015, with Italian and Spanish employers leading the way with a projected 15% and 7% growth in demand respectively. Demand for MBAs in Asia is settling at a sustainable rate of 11% per year. Since 2011, India has been vying with the USA to be the largest MBA job market and there is no sign of this trend reversing with forecast growth of 8% in 2015. Brazil, Argentina and Mexico continue to be the engines of MBA growth in Latin America. Demand has become much more plentiful in recent years and this trend is continuing, albeit at a more sustainable growth rate of 7% in 2014 after a year of 10% growth in 2013. Employers in the region are utilizing MBAs as a key talent pool as companies battle to internationalize across the region. Top Ten Countries for MBA Demand:
Overall MBA salaries have increased 4% on average in the mature North American and Western European markets for the first time in several years, the survey reveals. With evidence of MBA demand picking up steadily in North America as well as in several European markets, QS Top MBA continues to predict that MBA salaries are likely to increase again in 2015 in these regions.
Consulting— Consulting and professional services reports 9% demand growth in 2014 continuing this longstanding pattern, albeit at a slower rate than previous years. Consulting is a bellwether for the health of the MBA and the sector is forecasting 8% growth in 2015. Technology and Telecoms— The big story in 2014 is the growing demand for MBA talent amongst global technology companies, which are now recruiting in almost every region of the world. High tech/electronics companies report 11% growth in demand in 2014. IT/computer services 8% growth, while telecoms report 7% growth. General Industry—The consumer goods sector is reporting 12% growth in 2014, while manufacturing is reporting 10% growth, with large numbers of MBAs being hired, especially in emerging markets. Energy Sector—This sector continues to report strong MBA recruiting with an 18% increase in MBA jobs in 2014. Pharmaceuticals and Healthcare—This industry is dominated by global players,and after a bit of a lull, their appetite for MBAs seems to be resuming with 9% growth in demand in 2014. This 54-page survey is chock-full of useful information, and QS Top MBA hopes current and future MBA students can use this data to decide which industries and geographies they want to pursue in their MBA job search, as well as to help negotiate an optimum compensation. You can read the entire 2014-2015 QS Top MBA Job and Salary Trends survey here. |
29 Oct 2014, 11:00
| FROM Stacy Blackman Consulting Blog: How to Achieve Your Highest GMAT Score |
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Guest post from Josh Jones of Test Prep Unlimited, a private GMAT tutor in the San Francisco Bay Area. His students have reported score increases as high as seven points per tutoring hour. How to and how much you should study depends on your starting/target scores and the amount of time you have, but this guide should give you a good sense of how to structure your study. It’s best to use multiple GMAT resources, but be deliberate about how you use them to maximize your efficiency. If after reading this you still have questions, you can ask me at the Facebook Page for Test Prep Unlimited. Your first step is to learn how to speed-read. Your words per minute should be at least 400 (with >95% comprehension). Faster is better; 500+ would be great. Here’s a test for you: What speed do you read? Next, download the free, official GMATPrep® Software from the makers of the test. Read a little bit about the format and structure of the test, do 1 easy, 1 medium, and 1 hard question of each type (but save the rest of the questions and exams for later!), then take a full-length diagnostic exam under semi-realistic testing conditions (no outside reference or calculator, no pausing the exam to think about questions, etc). On timing: You’ll want to spend about two minutes per Quant question (perhaps more for Data Sufficiency and less for Problem Solving) and 2.5 minutes per Integrated Reasoning question. For Verbal, 75-90 seconds for each Sentence Correction and Critical Reasoning, 2-3 minutes for each Reading Comprehension Passage, plus 90 seconds each for the three or four questions that follow. The Verbal numbers will vary slightly depending on your strengths and weaknesses, but you have about 1 minute 49 seconds per Verbal question. If your starting score is under 550, you will want an entire foundational overview. I would recommend using Manhattan’s Foundations of GMAT books. Attempt some of the drills at the end of the section, and if they take you more than 15 seconds each, read the section beforehand and try again. Then you can move onto comprehensive strategy guides. If you’re between 550-650, you will still want that foundational overview, but you can do it more quickly. Then you can move onto comprehensive strategy guides. If you’re between 650-700, you can skip the foundational overview and work on the comprehensive strategy guides. If you’re already above 700, just focus on the 700-800 level questions, and on the specific subjects you need help with. Kaplan has a GMAT800 book, MGMAT has an Advanced Quant book, Veritas has a Data Sufficiency book, an Advanced Verbal book, etc. Books and Resources: The two most popular sets of comprehensive strategy guides are MGMAT and Veritas Prep. I personally prefer Veritas’s books; They have a better understanding of the test and their questions are closer to real GMAT questions. MGMAT’s guides are farther from the GMAT. They are a good first step, and are useful if you don’t need to gain more than 100 points, but they are far from ideal. They’re just marketed better, so they are more widely known. As for online resources, there is also GMATPill, Magoosh, and Economist GMAT Tutor. You cannot neglect studying Verbal! This is true even if you are a native English speaker (or even an English major!). The reasons are a) The Verbal skills cultivated in college are not exactly what the GMAT measures, and b) Many international applicants with superior Quant but weaker Verbal skills take the GMAT and skew the results so that the tail is much longer above V45 than for Q45. So if you have a solid Verbal score, you can still break 700, even with a less-than-stellar Quant score. For example, with a 40 in Quant, you could still break 700 with a 45 in Verbal. (In practice this is extremely difficult to attain, even for most native English speakers.) But it’s better and safer to have a more balanced score. If your Verbal score is below 40 and you have the time to do so, start your Verbal prep by using ACTand SATverbal prep materials (take all of their practice tests). Yes those are for high-schoolers applying to college, but what is more important here, your MBA or your ego? If you want to be a Verbal superstar, which is required to be above 750, do the Verbal sections from past LSAT‘s, as they are harder than the GMAT’s Verbal. These are good for Reading Comprehension and especially Critical Reasoning, but not Sentence Correction. Don’t do the LSAT Analytical Reasoning (as there is no parallel in GMAT), just the Reading and Logical Reasoning (which is similar to GMAT to Critical Reasoning). For every 50 hours of study that you do, take another practice test under exam conditions and review the solutions. GMATPrep has four, and you’ve used one already, so if you plan on taking several practice tests, use others first then come back to the GMATPrep exams at the end. Don’t burn through your practice tests without significant study in between, unless you’re already at the 750+ range, because you’re just using up your practice tests without gaining much in between. If you can afford it and would benefit from doing so, hire a private tutor to structure, motivate, and expedite your study (this will cost between $1,000-10,000 dollars). Be aware though: Tutoring companies take a large percentage of the tutor pay—70% or more—so if you can find an independent tutor with excellent credentials, teaching experience, and reviews, that’s a much more cost-effective route. Students in remote areas, countries outside the U.S., or with severe budget constraints, may benefit from online adaptive learning software such as Economist GMAT Tutor ($500-1,000). You can also take a class, but if you’re disciplined about your GMAT studies, you won’t get much more out of it than you would by following the program I’ve outlined, especially if you’re ahead or behind the curve for the class, as you will not move at your optimal pace. Actually the primary potential benefit of a class in this case is the potential for community you can form with your peers, but you will have to take that initiative and there is no guarantee you’ll get what you’re looking for. Finish your study with GMAC materials, first with The Official Guide for GMAT Review 2015 and the supplemental Quant andVerbal guides, then with GMATPrep. Always try to do the question first without looking at the solution, but don’t spend more than 5 minutes trying to solve a question if you’re stumped. Try to keep in mind actual test pacing, but spend as much time on each question as is necessary for you to complete it and understand the solutions provided (which are often not the best or fastest way to do the problems, by the way). In other words, first focus on getting questions right, then focus on getting them right quickly. Take another practice exam (see the timing suggestions at the beginning of this post), go over the answers, then do *ALL* of the GMATPrep questions in exam mode. Then take another practice exam, look at the solutions, and repeat as necessary until you feel satisfied with your results. Since OG and GMATPrep are real GMAT questions from the makers of the test, you will develop appropriate habits for test day as opposed to using test prep company materials which are imitations of, rather than substitutes for, real questions. So if you’re going to use multiple materials, DO NOT START YOUR STUDIES WITH GMAC MATERIALS!!! Once those questions are gone, they’re gone, and if you’re unsatisfied with your score, you’ll have to wait until either you forget these materials, or they release an entirely new set of questions (which will take years, since the updated questions are not for the entire set). Come test time, relax the day before the test (don’t cram!) and make sure you eat a healthy meal and sleep well. Know your biological clock and pick a 4 hour block for the test when you will be most alert and energetic, one that doesn’t require you to skip a meal. Bring healthy snacks, and stay hydrated, focused, and positive. Good luck on your studies and on your dreams! |
31 Oct 2014, 06:00
| FROM Stacy Blackman Consulting Blog: Stanford to Offer New Dual MA/MBA Program |
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The Stanford Graduate School of Business has announced the launch of a new dual degree program with the School of Humanities and Sciences. In three academic years, students will earn an MBA and an MA in International Policy Studies. Designed for students who want to work in fields that bridge businesses and governments in the United States and abroad, Stanford GSB notes that this cross-disciplinary program will prepare participants for leadership roles in non-profit organizations, social enterprises, international organizations, consulting firms, etc. focusing on issues such as international development, security, healthcare, trade and finance, and the environment. The interest in second degrees has grown in recent years, as Stanford MBA students look for opportunities for cross-sector leadership. Among MBA students, approximately 1 in 6 currently pursue joint or dual degree studies, the school reports. “More and more we find that students benefit from a multidisciplinary learning experience,” says Madhav Rajan, senior associate dean for academic affairs at the Graduate School of Business (GSB). “With Stanford’s School of Humanities and Sciences just down the street from the business school, it is possible to bring together the best resources in multiple fields for our students.” Find out more about Stanford’s new dual MA/MBA program for students interested in international policy and business, which will begin accepting applications this fall. *** Are you receiving the SBC weekly newsletter? Don’t miss out on exclusive offers, actionable tips and guidance, plus special discounts, giveaways and events sponsored by SBC and our partners. Sign up today! |
31 Oct 2014, 06:00
| FROM Stacy Blackman Consulting Blog: Stacy Blackman’s B-School Buzz |
 Welcome to the latest edition of Stacy Blackman’s B-School Buzz, our periodic check-in with some of the MBA blogosphere’s applicant and student contributors. This week, MBA bloggers provide interview recaps and brainstorm possible interview questions, as well as share thoughts on the transformational nature of the b-school experience. Interview prep time—With a Kellogg interview behind him and one with MIT Sloan imminent, Scott Duncan shares a comprehensive list with 25 interview questions he’s preparing to answer. Can you think of any he hasn’t touched on? Disappointment from Duke—Although the final determination—waitlisted or flat-out ding—hasn’t been revealed, Pulling that MBA Trigger is suffering major disappointment due to no admit offer from Duke Fuqua. As she is quick to point out, “This experience is definitely not for the fainthearted!” Tuck revisited—Last year, Grant Me Admission applied only to Tuck School of Business, and waited eight brutal months for an eventual release. With new perspective, a broader array of target schools, and a second interview at Tuck now behind him, he dedicates this latest post to a full recap of his interview experience. A personal transformation—Six weeks into his MBA program at UCLA Anderson School of Management, MBA Reapplicant (aka Michael Leve) finds many parallels between the changes one undergoes during business school and John Potter’s eight steps to transforming an organization, which he outlined in a 2007 Harvard Business Review article. Do you have an MBA-centric blog? Want it featured in an upcoming B-School Buzz post? If so, email me at buzz@StacyBlackman.com. |
03 Nov 2014, 07:00
| FROM Stacy Blackman Consulting Blog: Yale SOM May Expand Silver Scholars Program |
 Yale School of Management is considering an expansion of its Silver Scholars Program, which recruits MBA students straight from undergrad, the school announced last week. The program was founded in 2004 and requires two years of classroom experience separated by one year in the workforce. Associate Dean Anjani Jain told the Yale Daily News that “the thinking behind expanding the incoming Silver Scholars class stems from a larger and stronger applicant pool.” Originally, the program was open only to Yale College seniors, but broadened after the first two years to include students enrolled in any undergraduate institution. “The program is a way for the SOM to attract young talent,” Jain says, explaining in the Yale Daily News that the SOM’s first year integrated core curriculum provides a broad business education that fills in the blanks for students without prior business experience. Students say they like the program because it allows them to forgo entry-level jobs right out of undergrad and recruit much more quickly into MBA-level positions. Up until last year, the program enrolled five to six students annually, the paper reports, but that number climbed to seven for the class of 2016 and to 15 for the class of 2017. “The larger classrooms in SOM’s new building have made it physically possible to expand the Silver Scholars class,” says Yale SOM professor Barry Nalebuff, who notes that the decision to accept more Silver Scholars for next year will ultimately depend on the success of this year’s increase. You may also be interested in: Yale School of Management 2014-15 MBA Essay Tips Yale SOM Introduces Sliding Scale Application Fee |
05 Nov 2014, 12:00
| FROM Stacy Blackman Consulting Blog: Columbia Business School Launches Neighborhood Small Biz Program |
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Beginning this winter, Columbia Business School’s Small Business Development Center will offer a “StreetWise ‘MBA’”curriculum that aims to help neighborhood small businesses grow. The program is supported by Citi Community Development and will use a nationally recognized curriculum developed by Interise, a nonprofit committed to helping underserved small businesses scale. This comprehensive curriculum covers topics including financial management, marketing and sales, human resources tactics, business strategy development, and access to capital and new contracts. The Center began offering their 2-year community business program in 2009 and has since served more than 50 small businesses. The program serves business owners ranging from medical doctors’ offices to restaurants and florists. “The strength of the program lies in the fact that we’ve been focused on a specific neighborhood at a time of transition and of growth,” says Kaaryn Nailor Simmons, director of Columbia’s Small Business Development Center. “These businesses are able to network with their neighbors in a way that they wouldn’t be able to if they were across the state or even the city.” Columbia Business School’s Small Business Development Center unveils their revamped Columbia Community Business Program on the heels of a successful six-year program, which has served primarily Harlem-based small businesses. “Interise is very fortunate to expand our impact to the neighboring communities surrounding Columbia, thanks to our continued partnership with Citi Community Development,” says Jean Horstman, CEO of Interise. “All three partners are aligned in our beliefs that local small business growth and education is the key to growing jobs and revitalizing lower income communities.” The participants will spend the first year of the two-year program focused on creating their in-depth and personalized growth plans and the second year working on putting their plans into action. The second year of the program focuses on preparing participants for procurement opportunities with both the university and other large institutions. Participants will be exposed to procurement officers and coached on the processes, strategies, and requirements necessary to become a successful vendor. “Programs like the StreetWise ‘MBA’ are critical to help support minority and women business owners and entrepreneurs in low-income communities, giving them access to professional networks, a growth strategy, capital and contracts,” says Eileen Auld, regional director, New York Tri-State, Citi Community Development. Interise’s StreetWise ‘MBA’ curriculum is already offered in 36 communities across the nation, including through New York University’s Stern School of Business’ Strategic Steps for Growth program, which is currently offered in partnership with the NYC Department of Small Business Services (SBS). Unlike some formal continuing education programs, the curriculum allows small business owners to focus on their own operations rather than study other businesses. The Columbia-Harlem Small Business Development Center began offering online applications to business owners in early October. Anyone interested in learning more about the program or becoming a part of it can learn more at gsb.columbia.edu/sbdc. |
05 Nov 2014, 12:00
| FROM Stacy Blackman Consulting Blog: Stanford GSB Creates New Online Executive Learning Experience |
 Stanford Graduate School of Business has launched a new, online model for executive learning that recreates the intimate and academically rigorous on-campus Stanford experience in an interactive online environment, the school announced Wednesday. The new model will launch with the Stanford LEAD Certificate: Corporate Innovation, which aspires to help participants learn, engage, accelerate, and disrupt (LEAD). It is aimed at professionals who wish to drive new initiatives and effectively implement change within their organizations. “The program brings these compelling elements of Stanford to the world of online executive learning for the first time by combining a highly selective cohort and technology that enables self-paced learning, shared team work, and a cloud-based immersive space for group experiences,” says Peter DeMarzo, Faculty Director for Educational Technology at the GSB. This eight-course program will help participants develop their abilities to identify the ideas that deliver the most impact and to overcome organizational barriers. The program integrates real-time class discussions, ongoing feedback from world-class faculty and high-quality peers, engaging instructional video, online exercises, group projects, live-streamed events at Stanford GSB, and access to Silicon Valley leaders. The certificate will include three foundational courses: Financing Innovation: The Creation of Value, Critical Analytical Thinking, and Strategic Leadership. Participants will choose five innovation-focused electives from among ten that include Design Thinking: Building Brands Inside Out, Startup Garage for Intrapreneurs, Business Model Design, and Using Neuroscience to Influence Behavior. Over the next several years, the school expects to offer other certificate tracks in addition to Corporate Innovation, DeMarzo says. “Developing an online pedagogy gave us the freedom to think anew about how people can best learn, retain, and use this material. We’ve created a Stanford experience that people can digest on their own turf, at their own pace, and apply in real time.” Unlike Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), participants in the Stanford LEAD Certificate will be chosen by application into a select cohort of executives. This will enable all participants to interact directly with faculty, receive meaningful feedback, and benefit from a learning community of like-motivated peers. No more than 100 participants will be admitted to the first 2015 cohort. Stanford GSB has chosen to incorporate a suite of technologies to support this multifaceted, interactive experience, including the NovoEd online learning environment to enable team-based projects and collaboration. All participants will need is a video-enabled computer and an internet connection to participate from anywhere in the world. The program is designed to be completed within a year, at a pace of two courses per quarter. Including required assignments, team projects, and cohort events, participants should anticipate spending approximately five hours a week in the program. Overall, the Stanford LEAD Certificate, which costs $16,000, will deliver more than 200 hours of content and faculty engagement. Content will include personal development tools, direct faculty access, workshops, live-streamed Stanford events, interactive exercises, and experiential and project-based activities. Those who successfully complete the program will earn both a paper certificate and a LEAD Certificate badge for public posting to LinkedIn profiles. Applications are open now through March 25, 2015, and the program will begin on May 5, 2015. Candidates must upload a short, two-minute video about why they wish to take the certificate program and in what area of their organization they want to have impact. Applicants will be asked to show demonstrated resourcefulness and capability to affect change in an organization. Participants will be chosen based on their motivation for developing new products, services, cultural changes, or strategic pivots in their organizations. Professionals from large and small global companies, public institutions, and nonprofits are encouraged to apply. |
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